Milan, Italy, September 26, 2010 – A total of nine teams recorded their second win from as many matches at the FIVB Men’s World Championship in Italy on Sunday to confirm their spot in the second round with one match still to play in the first round.
Hosts Italy, Cuba, Brazil, Russia, Puerto Rico, Argentina, USA, France and Poland all top their individual pools and can’t finish worse than third and in some cases second. A total of 24 teams have been split into six groups in the first round of this 15 day competition where teams from each group play each other once with only the top three teams in each group advancing.
FIVB Men's World Championship 2010 official page
Pool A in Milan
Iran beat Japan 3-1 (15-25, 25-17, 26-24, 25-23)
Italy beat Egypt 3-0 ((25-20, 25-17, 25-23)
Iran, competing in their fourth FIVB Men's World Championship, claimed their first ever preliminary round victory by coming from behind to beat Japan in the first of Sunday's two Pool A matches in Milan. Although Iran had previously recorded four victories in the 1970 edition, they came when the team were playing off for positions 17-24 and Sunday’s result was a double bonus with Iran also claiming their first ever win over Japan. “I'm happy and proud of my team after this historic achievement,” Iran captain Alireza Nadi said. “We had the strength to stay in the game after the unsuccessful match against Egypt. thanks to our supporters who helped us here in Milan.”
The second match in Milan saw Italy book their place in the second round with their second win from as many matches and their eighth in nine encounters with an Egyptian side who couldn’t keep pace whilst suffering from a crucial knee injury to middle blocker Ahmed El Shikh.
Pool B in Verona
Cuba beat Tunisia 3-0 (25-18, 25-15, 25-15)
Brazil beat Spain 3-1 (30-28, 21-25, 25-20, 25-19)
Cuba beat Tunisia for the sixth time in as many matches in all FIVB competitions to book themselves a second round place. “This match was important before tomorrow, when we will play the last important game of the round against Brazil,” Cuba captain Robertlandy Aties Simon said.
In the second match, Brazilian super star Giba was absent from the starting six as the two time defending champions collected their 15th successive win in FIVB competitions with a well-worked victory over Spain, which confirmed the world No. 1’s place in the next phase.
Pool C in Modena
Puerto Rico beat Cameroon 3-0 (25-22, 25-23, 25-19)
Russia beat Australia 3-1 (25-16, 25-12, 24-26, 25-20)
Puerto Rico claimed their second victory in as many days with a straight-sets success over Cameroon, who dropped to a 0-2 win-loss record. Puerto Rico captain Hector Soto contributed 22 points while Jean Patrice Ndaki Mboulet compiled a match-high 24 for Cameroon. “Our goal was to minimize errors and we did that. Now we need to improve our game because tomorrow’s match against Russia is a difficult one,” Soto said.
Russia scored a victory over Australia in the second game in Modena to remain in contention for the top place in Pool C. In Monday’s contest between two undefeated sides, Russia will meet Puerto Rico to define the pool winner while Australia will be pitted against Cameroon in a match to decide who stays in the World Championship and who returns home.
Pool D in Reggio Calabria
Argentina beat Mexico 3-1 (25-12, 25-19, 17-25, 25-15)
USA beat Venezuela 3-0 (25-19, 25-23, 25-19)
Argentina’s wing spiker Facundo Conte led his team to victory over Mexico, their second in Pool D. The promising youngster was the man of the match not only with the 22 points he scored but also with his leadership and passion all through the game.
“I'm happy with the performance of my team,” Argentina coach Javier Weber said. “We played well especially, in the first two sets, against a very well organized team in defense.”
USA improved their win- loss ratio to 2-0 with a much-improved straights win over Venezuela and secured a second round spot, while Venezuela dropped to 0-2.
Pool E in Turin
Czech Republic beat China 3-1 (25-21, 19-25, 25-18, 25-22)
France beat Bulgaria 3-2 (25-22, 23-25, 25-17, 28-30, 19-17)
China suffered their 10th successive defeat in FIVB competitions with a four set loss to the Czech Republic, providing them with a much-win match against pool leaders France on Monday if they are to retain any hope of continuing in the competition. “We won a sort of final for this pool,” Czech Republic coach Jan Svoboda said. “We played better than yesterday especially in the most important moments of the match.”
France defeated Bulgaria in an emotional battle in the second match with the fifth set finishing off a thrilling match. Neither team held a two-point lead until the final score in a set which saw 17 ties and six lead changes. "Today's match was very important for both teams, and it was a beautifully played match,” France coach Philippe Blain said.
Pool F in Trieste
Canada beat Serbia 3-1 (25-20, 25-22, 17-25, 25-23)
Poland beat Germany 3-2 (25-20, 21-25, 25-22, 22-25, 15-13)
Canada caused an upset in front of a record audience of 5,766 at the Palatrieste by defeating the 2010 World League bronze medallists Serbia in four sets. The surprise victory by Glenn Hoag's men confirms that a competitive-looking Pool F must be considered probably the toughest of the six 1st round pools at this FIVB Volleyball World Championship.“Serbia made more mistakes than we did and this is a good result for such a young team, even though this may not be enough to move on to the next round,” Canada coach Hoag said.
Poland defeated Germany in five sets to already claim a spot for the next round profiting from the astonishing defeat of Serbia by Canada. As for Germany, their fate rests on their match up with Germany on Monday. “Before the start of the game I told my players that we had to be ready for a big fight and a long match,” Poland coach Daniel Castellani said. “My forecasts were correct.”
Standings
Pool A (Milano): Italy 4, Egypt 3, Iran 3, Japan 2.
Pool B (Verona): Brazil 4, Cuba 4, Spain 2, Tunisia 2.
Pool C (Modena): Russia 4, Puerto Rico 4, Australia 2, Cameroon 2.
Pool D (Reggio Calabria): Argentina 4, USA 4, Mexico 2, Venezuela 2.
Pool E (Turin): France 4, Bulgaria 3, Czech Republic 3, China 2.
Pool F (Trieste): Poland 4, Serbia 3, Canada 3, Germany 2.
Highest Scorers By Day
Day 1: 28 points by Antonin Rouzier (FRA) in France’s 3-2 win over the Czech Republic in Turin.
Day 2: 27 points by Maxim Mikhaylov (RUS) in Russia’s 3-1 win over Australia in Modena
Tournament Top Scorers
54 Antonin Rouzier (FRA)
43 Bartosz Kurek (POL)
41 Hector Soto (PUR)
41 Maxim Mikhaylov (RUS)
40 Matey Kaziyski (BUL)
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Argentina
Australia
Brazil
Bulgaria
Canada
China
Cameroon
Cuba
Czech Republic
Egypt
Spain
France
Germany
Iran
Italy
Japan
Mexico
Poland
Puerto Rico
Russia
Serbia
Tunisia
USA
Venezuela
